Death Seems to Follow Her
by Gwen Luthael
Summary: Warrior maiden tries to find her place in the world . . . and maybe beats up a few cocky elven princes along the way. Absolutely NOT a mary sue. My first fanfic please read!
1. Chapter 1

Okay - - thank you to anyone who's actually reading this. This is my first (rather pathetic) attempt at a fanfic, so if you have any comments, please review! I need all the help I can get! 

And, obviously, none of the LotR characters are mine . . . they're all J.R.R. Tolkein's. (duh.)

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Liah stumbled out of her bed. It was still dark outside, but she knew she had to start practicing the sword now if she wanted to get a head start on her sister Fenwyne. The two young women had fierce rivalry in swordsmanship, archery, riding ability, and other forms of combat. Fenwyne, who was two years older, was better at archery, hand-to-hand combat, and quarterstaff, but Liah was past her in the other elements.

Liah slipped her shift off and pulled a fresh one on. She wore dresses half the time, and, when her father was traveling, delivering the weapons he made, she wore boys' clothes, which were much more practical. Over her shift, she pulled a dark green dress, pretty, but plain. Then she pulled on her black gloves with the fingertips cut out, and finally, pulled on her comfortable black leather boots.

She walked quietly over to the door of the room, and opened it as softly as she could. It squeaked a bit, and Liah winced and looked over at Fenwyne's sleeping form. However, Fenwyne stayed asleep, and Liah slipped out, leaving the door ajar. Then she walked swiftly and silently down the hall, past her father's room, from which thunderous snores emanated, and down the stairs. She grabbed a white bun from the clay bowl on the counter. It still held some of its warmth from last night, which was mostly because of the cloth Liah had put over it.

Fenwyne had made the buns, but as usual, she left the washing-up to Liah, along with making sure to cover them, so they wouldn't turn stale. Liah shook her head with a bit of a grin. Fenwyne and their father were both hopeless at anything to do with house work. So, that usually fell to Liah, though she hated it just as much as anybody.

What Fenwyne and Liah both loved doing was helping their father make things, from weapons to tools to jewelry, they loved helping their father, the blacksmith. Both Fenwyne and Liah were very skilled in the trade, and Fenwyne planned to become a blacksmith herself. Liah was still unsure about what she wanted to do, since she loved tracking and hunting more than smithy-work.

But she wouldn't have to decide for a long time yet. For now, all she was going to think about was her sword. It was a unique weapon, four feet of curved steel, with a straight hilt long enough to grasp with two hands. It was strangely light, much lighter than one would expect. Liah's father had never told her how he had made the weapon.

Liah and her sister both had their personal weapons, Liah, her sword, and Fenwyne her bow. No one but the owners touched these weapons. The rest of the weapons, anyone could use, and the other villagers often borrowed bows for hunts. There was one weapon no one could use, however, a scythe-like weapon, with a five-foot shaft, and a curved blade on the end. It was the girls' mothers', and they often saw their father fingering it sadly. It was an elven weapon, and Liah had always longed to hold it, but she had never dared ask.

Liah's mother had been an elf, but neither she nor Fenwyne remembered her. She had died when they were very young. Both of them had pointed ears, like full elves, but Gandalf, the wizard who visited them sometimes, said that they were mortal, because they were only half elves.

Liah pushed her hair back, finished her breakfast, and walked outside. The sun was just about rising over the tops of the trees, and Liah smiled. This was the time of day. She liked best. She stood there for a while, gazing down the mountain at the village arrayed on its side, and then turned away, and went to the weapons shed.

Liah took her sword off the shelf and quickly belted it around her waist. "Elen-hyanda," she whispered, "Star blade!"

She walked back out, and smoothly drew her sword from its sheath. She then spent the next hour and a half destroying imaginary orcs and cave trolls(those were trickier). Liah stopped when she saw Fenwyne, yawning and rubbing sleep out of her eyes, enter the weapon shed and come out with her bow.

"How early did you get up this time?" Fenwyne asked, "you're insane, you know."

Liah playfully punched her in the shoulder. "You're just saying that 'cause you're jealous. I'm better than you in tons of things!"

"Yeah right, you wish!"

"I'm serious, challenge me in anything, and I'll beat you."

"Okay, I will! Beat me in archery."

Liah smiled. "Easy! But let's get Dad to watch, otherwise, you'll cheat."

"Thanks a lot, Liah!"

Liah dodged a punch and stuck out her tongue playfully. "I'm gonna beat you, so get ready for it!" Then she ran off to wake up their sleeping father. She found him already in the kitchen, eating an apple. Ian was a huge man, with muscles that matched his trade. He had red hair that matched Fenwyne's, and he wore a short beard. He was easily over six feet tall.

"Dad, hurry up, Reagan's trying to prove she's better than me at archery, and I'm trying to make her realise that she's not. You have to be the judge." She pulled him by the arm out of the kitchen.

"You have too much energy," Ian grumbled. "All right, all right, I'm coming!"

The two people came outside to find Fenwyne squinting at something. "Do you see that?" She asked, pointing to a dark stain near the foot of the mountain.

Liah and Ian squinted at it along with her. It seemed to be moving, and then Liah suddenly screamed, "Orcs! We're under attack!"

"Fenwyne, Liah, go warn the villagers! Hurry! I'll be right there," Ian yelled, as he ran off to the weapon shed. The two girls took off, running at a dangerous speed down the narrow path that led to the rest of the houses.

"Orcs, orcs, run!" Fenwyne screamed as they reached the first houses. "Hurry, orcs!" Doors banged open, and frantic people ran out. "Hurry, we're under attack!"

"Quick, up the path," Liah yelled. Suddenly, she saw a black-skinned orc appear at the end of the road, and before she could even shout a warning, Fenwyne fitted an arrow to her bow and shot it. It hit the orc squarely in the forehead.

Then Ian barreled past them, with swords under one arm and bows under the other. He tossed swords to all the men who knew how to use them, and bows to the best archers. "Everyone who can't fight, up the path!" he bellowed. There was a frenzied rush for the path, and then, over the crest of the hill came the orcs.

Fenwyne and Liah exchanged glances and squeezed hands. Arrows flew over their heads, but few, very few orcs fell. Fenwyne began shooting, and her every shot felled another orc. And then the orcs were on them. Liah had fought orcs before, but these seemed different, taller, and stronger. She had no sooner chopped off one's head when another one was in front of her, swinging its sword.

Then, the biggest one yet was in front of her, and she tiredly swung her sword at it. It blocked her easily, and grabbed her by the throat. It lifted her off the ground, and she dropped her sword, and grabbed its arms. She kicked it again and again, and finally, with a snarl, it threw her into the side of a building. She lay on the ground, gasping for air, and with a great effort, pulled herself to her feet. She staggered over to her sword and picked it up. She tiredly ran after the orcs, who had managed to break past the defenders and were now streaming up the mountain pass.

As she caught up to the first orc, she stabbed him in the back and shoved him off the path. The next orc saw her before she could touch him, and slashed at her. She jumped back, but it sliced her forehead anyway. Liah ducked under its next swung, and sliced its leg out from under it. Then she ran up after the rest. She heard screams, and knew that the women and children, undefended, had been reached. With a primal scream of rage, she attacked the goblins, slicing limbs and chopping off heads. She was cut and bruised, and incredibly tired; only adrenaline kept her going. Suddenly, she realised that there were only three orcs left. They turned, and attacked all at once.

The first was foolish, and inexperienced. She took him out in three quick thrusts. The next two were wary, and with a cringe, Liah realised that one was the orc who had tried to strangle her. Even though he was weaponless, she knew he would be dangerous. The other was easily as big, if not bigger, and he wore a full set of armor, and held a sword. The swordless one ran at her and grabbed the end of her sword. She yanked it upwards and it lost its thumb. Meanwhile, the other slashed at her unprotected middle. Dodging it, she fell backwards and the orc without a sword stepped forward over her. She swung her sword over her head, and the orc lost his. Then the last one swung with all its force at her neck. Liah rolled aside, and as it raised its sword to strike again, a blade sprouted from its middle.

It gave a confused, angry bellow, and died. Then she saw Wil, a seventeen year old young man whom Liah suspected loved her. At least, that's what the flowers and poems indicated. The adrenaline rush gone, Liah wearily pulled herself to her feet. "Thanks Wil, that orc probably would've killed me if you hadn't-Wil?"

Wil dropped his sword, and stared at her with glazed eyes. "Liah, my mother, she's dead! I saw an orc cut her down before my eyes, and I couldn't stop it. My father too, and my sisters. . .oh Liah..."

Then he stumbled forwards, and Liah dropped her sword and caught him, and lowered him to the ground. She glanced at his chest and nearly screamed with frustration. There was a bloody wound on the left side. No matter what, Wil was as good as dead. "I always liked you Liah..." He trailed off, and stared with dead eyes into Liah's. A drop of water fell onto Wil's face, and Liah bent over him, silently crying.

She gently laid his head on the ground, closed her eyes for a minute, and then screamed, "Fenwyne!" Liah ran down the path, stumbling and scraping her hand bloody, and then she saw Fenwyne's bow, lying off to one side of the path. She saw her sister's hand under a dead orc, and heaved it off her with all her strength. Her sister lay there, staring up with soft brown eyes that would never see anything again, and Liah fell to the ground, sobbing. She screamed a wordless roar of pain, and broke into sobs again. She pulled Fenwyne's head onto her lap and sat there crying for what seemed like eternity. Suddenly she felt a hand on her shoulder.

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Pretty suspenseful ending, huh? Well, you've finished chapter one. PLEASE! keep reading! It can only get better, right? 


	2. Chapter 2

If I do something stupid, please tell me so I can fix it! And keep reading!

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Liah whirled around, and saw the kindly face of Gandalf staring with pity down at her. "Why weren't you here?" Liah screamed at him. "You could've stopped this! Where were you?"

"Liah-" he began in his soft calm voice.

"You don't even care! You don't care that my sister is dead!"

Then Liah saw the tears in his grey eyes, and said, in a hoarse whisper: "Why weren't you here?"

"I'm sorry Liah, I came as quickly as I could. You know I would've prevented this if I could've."

Liah laid her sister's head gently down and kissed her brow. "Sleep in peace, my sister," she whispered.

Then she stood up, and Gandalf embraced her, and she found herself crying again. "I wasn't strong enough," she whispered.

"No, Liah, never think that," Gandalf reprimanded her. "You were strong beyond belief, given your enemies. Now, I need you to be strong once again. I need you to journey to Rivendell, to the House of Elrond. You are no longer safe here, and Rivendell is the closest haven that can shelter you. Go to your house, and pack clothes and food. Then return here, and I will direct you on your path."

"Father!" Liah cried, "Where is Father?"

"Go, Liah, prepare for your journey. I promise you, I will find your father."

Liah nodded dumbly, and stumbled off to her house. Gandalf shook his head sadly. That young woman had just witnessed the slaughter of her entire village, and he knew that when he did find Ian the blacksmith, he would not be alive.

Liah, once in the house, quickly shoved all her boys' clothes into a pack, and grabbed the buns. She wrapped them in a cloth, and, along with dried fruit and meat, and a water skin, put them in the bag. She was about to leave, when, on an instinct, she grabbed the scythe-weapon. Then she ran out of the empty building. She grabbed her sword as she passed by the place where Wil lay, and tried to avert her eyes from the mangled bodies of the orc victims.

Once she reached Gandalf, she said, "Did you find him?"

"I found him, yes, and buried him."

The last flicker of hope faded from Liah's eyes. "My entire family is dead then. I am an orphan. I will go to Rivendell, and train, until I am the best sword fighter in Middle Earth. Then I will kill every last orc." She turned to Gandalf. "Tell me the way."

"You must head south, til you find the Old Forest Road. Head west along it, through Mirkwood. Once you reach the crossing of Anduin, the Great River, the road will lead you through mountains. Once you have passed through the mountains, you will come upon Rivendell. There, you will be safe." Gandalf paused, and called out, "Shadowfax, Linta, come." A white stallion and a dark grey mare trotted out from behind a house. Gandalf took the grey's reins and handed them to Liah. "This is Linta, a horse of Rohan. Her name means 'swift' in the Elvish tongue. Indeed, let us hope that she bears you as well as her name would imply. Now, repeat to me the passage to Rivendell."

"You're not going with me?" Liah asked with surprise, "Why not?"

"I must journey now to Isengard, to take council with the head of my order. There is a grave matter of which I must speak with him. Now, repeat it to me."

"I have to go south from this mountain to the Old Forest Road, then follow it west. Once I cross the Anduin river, it will lead me through mountains, and then I will come upon Rivendell."

"Very good, now farewell Liah, let us hope that we will meet again." And with that, he mounted his own horse and galloped off down the mountain.

"Linta," Liah whispered. The horse turned her head and blinked, and rubbed her great nose on Liah's shoulder. "I will ride, but first I must bury my friends, and dispose of the foul orc bodies." And so the rest of the day passed, with Liah piling and burning dead orcs and digging rows of graves for the slain villagers. The sun was setting as she finished, but Liah had no wish to remain in a village of the dead for a night. So, with Fenwyne's bow, her mother's weapon, her sword, food and clothing which were stored in a saddle bag, and Linta, Liah set off from the village which she had spent her sixteen years at. She didn't look back.

It was fully nighttime by the time Liah found the Old Forest Road. Or at least a small path through Mirkwood that would lead her to it. She found a small clearing directly off the path, and decided to spend the night there. As she lay on the ground, she cried again, remembering each of the villagers, and most of all, Fenwyne and Ian. It was very late before her eyes finally closed and she drifted off to sleep.

The next morning and day passed uneventfully, with Liah finding the road, and following it west. Linta was a good horse, and Liah found herself talking to the animal. Linta was a better listener than most people Liah knew, her main point being that she didn't criticise, all she did was twist her head around and look back at you with her big grey eyes.

Liah was in no particular hurry to reach Rivendell, so she went slowly, letting Linta go at her own pace. They went on like this for three days, and Liah guessed that she was about half-way through Mirkwood. Her food was almost gone, and so, on the evening of the third day, she went off into the woods around the road to forage for food.

She found a patch of some kind of berry, and gathered as much as she could carry on her own. Suddenly, she heard Linta give an alarmed whinny. Liah dropped her berries and ran back to the road. There she saw five men, three of whom were trying to calm Linta down, and the other two were keeping watch. One of them saw her right away, and he nudged his companion in the ribs with a grin.

"Well, well, what have we here?" he said, grinning at Liah.

"Excuse me, but that's my horse. She's frightened, please, leave her alone," Liah said, trying to sound helpless and scared.

"She _was_ your horse, you mean," one of the men said. "This one's a fine war-horse, worth almost as much as you are."

The man who had spotted Liah first moved closer, and made as if to grab her arm, but Liah kicked him squarely in the stomach, and drew her sword from its scabbard. "Let her go," she said angrily, pointing its tip at who Liah guessed was the leader. "Or things will go worse for you."

He raised his eyebrows at her. "So, dangerous as well as beautiful. Get her."

The three men still standing drew their swords, and one, the oldest said, "We wouldn't want to hurt you, lovely, so just put down your sword, surrender, and we promise not to hurt you."

"Why would I trust the promise of a brigand such as you?" And then Liah attacked. She zeroed in on one, the weakest swordsman clearly. She flicked the point of her sword towards his eyes, and when he raised his blade in defence, she jumped forwards and clubbed him on the head with the hilt. "One down, four to go," she muttered. She pushed her hair back, out of her face, and the man she had kicked yelped:

"Groln, she's an elf!"

Groln, who was the leader, stared in shock at Liah and said, "Why, so she is! This one's worth mountains of gold! Take her alive, boys, and no scratches on her pretty face."

The two men circled around Liah, and the man she had kicked backed away, and drew his own weapon from his belt: a huge axe. Without warning, the older, more experienced swordsman attacked, and then so did the other one. Liah was drawn into a more intense battle than anything she had ever experienced before. Every time she blocked one attack, she was forced to whip her sword around and block another one; she was completely defensive, and had no time to attack. Then the axeman joined the fight, and Liah knew there was no way she could win.

She held out for about five more minutes, and even knocked the weaker swordsman out. But then her sword was knocked out of her hands, and the axeman pressed his weapon against her neck. "Good fight, girl, but you were clearly the inferior warrior. Now don't move unless you want to lose your head."

Liah glared at him. "I'd rather die than be held captive by you," she spat.

"You would, but it's not up to me," the man said calmly, and he clubbed her on the head.

When Liah regained consciousness, she was lying, tied up, by a fire. The brigands were sitting around it, eating some kind of meat. There were also several other men, lighter of hair and skin than her captors, who were swarthy and dark. "Hey boys, she's awake!" this came from the axeman. "I was beginning to think I'd hit you too hard."

Then one of the newcomers crossed around the fire and crouched by Liah. "I've purchased you, so you are now my property. Can I trust you not to run away if I untie you?"

"No," Liah told him truthfully. "If you untied me, I would run away."

The man sighed. "I'm sure you would be much more comfortable. If you cooperate with me, your life will become much better than it is now, one day I might even free you."

"I'd believe that when it happens."

"Which will be never if you keep up this behaviour. I reward my slaves for good behaviour, as I told you, but I do not allow behaviour such as yours to go unpunished." Saying this, he got up and walked back to his companions. He nodded to one, a tall, angry-looking middle-aged man. He stood up and walked over to Liah, and removed something from his belt. Liah almost cried when she saw what it was: a whip.

She clenched her teeth, and determinedly didn't cry out. The whipping lasted for what felt like forever, and when it finally stopped, Liah was sure her back was raw and bloody. "This is what happens to those who disobey me. Understand?" someone whispered into her ear.

Liah cried herself to sleep that night.


	3. Chapter 3

When Liah woke the next morning, she was disoriented, and tried to stand up. But then she realised that she was sitting on a horse, and that someone was holding her around her waist. She blinked blearily and saw that she was riding among trees, and that there were several other riders around her. Of her original captors, there was no sign.

"Awake, my lovely?" Liah almost groaned. It was the pale man from last night who's horse she was riding on. "Good," he said, although Liah hadn't answered. "Riders, halt!" he called, and the riders all stopped. He slid fluidly from the horse, and pulled Liah down after him. He pulled something from the saddle bag and tossed it to Liah, who caught it awkwardly with her tied-up hands. It was a bundle of white cloth and something silver. The man pointed to a nearby grove of trees.

"You will change into that over there. And I would suggest not trying to escape." Then he untied Liah's hands. "Hurry up. If you keep me waiting, I will come to see what is taking you."

Liah hurried over to the grove and quickly changed into the dress. It was plain, but of fine material. The silver thing was a belt. She was about to put it on when the pale man appeared, and grabbed her by the wrist and pulled her back to the horses. "Get on, hurry up," he hissed at her. Once they were on, he kicked the horse. "Ride, ride fools!" he yelled to the other men. Suddenly, and arrow whizzed over head and struck a man. He fell from his horse with a cry. The pale man cursed and shoved Liah off the horse. He jumped down and yanked Liah back onto her feet by her hair, and then pulled her off the road.

"It seems someone is trying to rescue you," he hissed. "Sadly, they won't be succeeding!" he pushed her into a tree and began to throttle her. Liah kicked and struggled, but her protests became weaker and weaker. Suddenly, he stopped, his eyes growing big with shock, and he fell over. Liah, hovering on the verge of unconsciousness, saw that an arrow was sticking out of his back. Then, everything went black.

When Liah woke up, a very attractive young man was leaning over her. "My lady, are you alright?" he asked.

Liah blinked. "You're an elf!" she said.

"So are you. I am Legolas, son of Thranduil, King of Mirkwood."

"I'm only a half-elf. And I'm Liah."

"Pleased to meet you, Liah." Legolas extended his hand to Liah, to help her get to her feet.

Pointedly ignoring it, Liah got up on her own.

The elf looked slightly put out. _Maybe he's used to flimsy elf-maidens who fall over his feet whenever he walkes by, _Liah thought wryly. "So, where exactly am I?" she asked.

"You are in Mirkwood, m'lady, in the realm of my father." Then he added, in case she hadn't heard the first time, "King Thranduil. King of Mirkwood."

Liah nodded distractedly, stretching out her sore arms. "I can't believe I was so careless as to let them capture me!"

"It's not you're fault," Legolas said gently. "Those brigands have even captured some of our most skilled elves - though that is all over now!"

Liah looked at him oddly. "Why are you talking to me like that?"

Legolas blinked. "Like what?"

"Like you're trying to impress me, or make me like you."

He looked rather dejected. "Was it really that obvious?" At Liah's nod, he sighed. "I told Father it wouldn't work, but he insisted. He wants me to talk to anyone new coming into our kingdom, and set them at ease. Then, I'm supposed to pump them for information."

"That's not very nice! You get people to trust you, then just turn around and question them?"

The elven prince looked indignant. "This is not just for fun, little girl! This is vital to the security of my people!"

"Little girl?" Liah's voice rose. "How dare you! You - you- augh!" She turned on her heel and walked away. This Legolas of Mirkwood was thouroughly insufferable!

"Hang on, you can't just walk off. There could easily be more of those bandits about." Another elf had appeared seemingly out of nowhere. She looked remarkably similar to Legolas. "I know he's a stuck-up git sometimes, but he means well," she added, gesturing back to Legolas.

Liah was rather impressed that this elf dared to insult "the great prince of Mirkwood," and said as much.

The she-elf threw back her head and laughed. "He's my brother! He's never been safe from my regular attacks on his character, as he calls them."

Liah grinned at the woman. "You do look like siblings," she told her. "But I don't think I can stay here any longer, regardless of whether Legolas's heart is in the right place.

"I cannot in good conscience let you wander off on your own. There are other pockets of elves in the wood who would be markedly less kind towards a strange elf wandering into their midst." Legolas's sister looked concerned. "At least stay the night, and we can set you off in the right direction in the morning." She stuck out her hand. "I'm Tolwen, by the way."

Liah took her hand and after only the briefest of hesitations replied, "I'm Liah."

"Come on then - let's get you some new clothes. I'm sure you don't want to wear that any longer," Tolwen said, gesturing to her white dress. As Liah gamely followed her, Tolwen asked, "How long were you their slave for anyway?"

Liah stopped dead in her tracks. "They were slavers?" she demanded in an icy voice.

Tolwen turned around, concern furrowing her fair brow. "You didn't know?"

"No." Liah felt cold. Only now did she truly realise what terrible fate she had so narrowly escaped. "I - they only - I was only with them since yesterday."

Tolwen put a comforting hand on Liah's shoulder. "I'm sorry. But you should count yourself lucky that you escaped them." Her melodious voice grew hard. "They shall no longer make captives of my people. My brother and I have seen to that."

_They don't know about the others, _Liah suddenly realised. "Tolwen, those weren't the men that captured me. There were others - they gave me to the men you killed."

Tolwen glanced around, her sparkling blue eyes taking in every detail of the surrounding forest. "I know. But we can't talk here. I'll bring you to my father - he'll want to hear everything you can remember about the other men."

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Well, that's all I have for now . . . more soon to follow! 


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